Chapter 352 - 228: Charles Mellon Calls GG
’He didn’t understand. Isn’t this the Mellon Family’s private property? Isn’t my last name Mellon? Why do these bastards and peasants, these lowest of the low, care so much about my family’s business?’
"I don’t know," said Timothy. "Right now, not many people know the full story. But since he hasn’t shut you out completely, it means the situation isn’t entirely hopeless."
’I love you, my dear grandpa. Even though you’re an old bastard who won’t step down, I still love you.’
"But that doesn’t mean I won’t deal with you," Timothy snapped. "Now, get your ass back to your apartment and pack your bags immediately. First thing tomorrow morning, my private jet will be waiting at the airport to take you to a wellness center in Switzerland. You can detox and go through rehab while you’re there."
"To Switzerland?" Charlie was stunned.
"That’s right, Switzerland! For the next month, you’re going to stay in the Alps and get clean! Cut off all outside contact, accept no interviews, and stay the hell off those damned social media apps and away from parties!" Timothy’s voice sounded stretched to its absolute limit. "You can haul your ass back here for the family Christmas dinner a month from now! Between now and then, don’t you dare cause any more trouble!"
’There was no way Charles Mellon was going to take this lying down.’ He was still fixated on that 1 billion USD fund from Richard Mellon.
His Manhattan Art Center was already well-established. Even at a 5% personal cut, he stood to make 50 million USD.
’It was bad enough that he had to let that little brat Elizabeth take a piece of the pie before. But now, it looked like she was going to get the whole thing?’
"What about Uncle Richard’s one-billion-USD deal?" he finally blurted out. "If I go to Switzerland now, Richard will definitely funnel all that money and all those resources to Elizabeth! That’s—"
BEEP... BEEP... BEEP.
The call had been furiously disconnected.
Timothy Mellon couldn’t be bothered with him, treating him like a piece of snot he’d accidentally touched and was now desperate to flick away.
Charles Mellon stood there, phone in hand, staring blankly. A wave of nausea hit him, and he began to dry heave as stars burst in his vision.
He let out a retch and vomited in the car.
Thursday afternoon, a cold wind swept across the Yale Campus in New Heaven.
Li Wei walked out of a Gothic-style academic building, his class discussion having just ended.
Since the Giants had already clinched a playoff spot, the team’s enthusiasm for practice had inevitably waned.
And Li Wei, the biggest reason for their success, was naturally afforded the team’s greatest privilege: he could now choose whether or not to attend practice.
No one had any objections. A rising tide lifts all boats, after all. The massive victories Li Wei delivered meant his teammates also reaped the rewards; the entire team’s valuation had increased by at least 20% compared to the previous season.
This was why Li Wei, who was normally at practice on Thursdays, was now free to attend a class discussion.
Li Wei walked towards the parking lot, and Elizabeth caught up to him from behind.
"*Phew*, I just got out of the library," Elizabeth said, pulling her coat tighter. She turned to Li Wei, her expression lighting up. "When are you free next? I’d like to take you out for a meal."
"Take me out for a meal?" Li Wei raised an eyebrow. "There’s a McDonald’s in downtown New Heaven. I’m free right now."
"Oh, come on!"
Elizabeth stomped her foot. "Not McDonald’s! I mean a proper meal."
"Haven’t you seen the news the last couple of days?" she said, unable to hide her glee. "Charles Mellon is caught up in it. He’s in huge trouble."
"I’ve heard a little something," Li Wei said. "So what about Richard Mellon...?"
"He had dinner with me last Wednesday," Elizabeth said, taking a deep breath to steady herself. "That first time, he was just sounding me out, gauging my attitude. But this morning, his personal assistant contacted me again."
"This time was different," she said excitedly. "His assistant told me that idiot, Charlie, has been stripped of all his duties. Uncle Richard wants me to prepare to receive the one-billion-USD capital injection."
"Sounds like you hit the jackpot," Li Wei said with a smile. "You should be able to clear tens of millions from this, right?"
"I think so," Elizabeth said, a hopeful look on her face. "And it’s more than that. This means my standing in the family will change, too. That’s why I absolutely have to take you out to dinner to celebrate."
"It certainly sounds worth celebrating," Li Wei shrugged. "So, will you give me a tip this time?"
"Alright, alright, I know I messed up," Elizabeth said, caught off guard for a second. "Of course. This time, I’ll give you a tip you can’t refuse!"
’And sooner or later, I’ll be the one you can’t refuse,’ she thought.
The two said goodbye in the parking lot. Li Wei waved and walked towards his Cullinan.
Elizabeth, on the other hand, opened the door to the Range Rover SV parked by the roadside and got into the back seat.
"Home, Miss?" the driver in front asked respectfully.
"Yes, to the art gallery office in Brooklyn," Elizabeth replied casually.
As the car drove steadily out of the Yale Campus, the smile on Elizabeth’s lips slowly faded.
Something’s not right.
Something was very, very wrong.
Li Wei’s reaction today had been far too calm. She remembered how he had been right there helping her deal with the whole mess when JPMorgan Chase froze her 50 million USD in bridge funding.
But his reaction now gave her a strange feeling, as if he wasn’t the least bit surprised about what happened with Onyx.
Although he didn’t show it, Elizabeth still felt something was off.
Elizabeth’s heart suddenly gave a hard thump.
She quickly sorted through the timeline in her mind.
Before, at the dinner in the Dandong Temple Hall, Li Wei had just told her that Charles Mellon had already missed his window of opportunity and couldn’t make a move against them anymore.
Right after that, on Monday, Julian was suspended and escorted out by the compliance department at JPMorgan Chase.
And then this week, the Onyx United Building scandal broke, which then, just so happened to inexplicably implicate Charles Mellon.
If all of this was a coincidence, it was far too much of a coincidence.
Elizabeth’s intuition began to sound like an alarm, flashing incessantly in the back of her mind.
She had reason to suspect Li Wei did all of this silently behind the scenes, but she had no proof.
This didn’t make her feel flustered or afraid. She wasn’t the kind of control freak who needed to have everything in her grasp—she’d certainly never had that luxury growing up.
But this inscrutable quality of Li Wei’s made her feel an intense, ticklish restlessness, like a hundred tiny kittens were clawing at her insides.
Li Wei was like a thick, mysterious book, and her intense curiosity, her desire to flip through his pages and get to the bottom of everything, was like a wildly growing vine. It wrapped itself so tightly around her she could barely breathe. And yet, at the same time, she found herself sinking into a trembling, exhilarating state of intoxication.
Li Wei naturally didn’t know that Elizabeth’s curiosity about him had already reached its peak.
Part of his mind was now on the Sunday showdown with the Philadelphia Eagles, which was also the last game of November.
According to John Mara, this game was a critical juncture. It would determine the future success of his sports drink business. It was also an important opportunity for him to win and, as a matter of course, boost his attribute points. He needed to take it seriously.
「Sunday Afternoon」
The Giants’ twelfth game of the season was set to begin in two hours at MetLife Stadium in New York.